Gag Order Sought In Slaying Case

August 20, 1991|By Bob Merrifield.

A Will County judge agreed Monday to consider a request by defense attorneys to bar the public from court proceedings leading up to the murder trial of a Coal City man accused of raping and stabbing to death a 65-year-old Wilmington woman.

State`s Atty. Edward A. Burmila Jr. said he will fight the extraordinary request.

The order sought by defense lawyers would forbid attorneys to make statements outside the courtroom and bar spectators from attending hearings held before the trial begins.

The defense request is among several to be heard Tuesday by Judge Thomas Ewert in preparation for the trial of Tyrone Brandon, 24, who is accused of the April 24, 1990, stabbing death of Estervina VanDuyne.

VanDuyne was raped, strangled, struck on the head and stabbed more than 40 times, police said.

Burmila, who is seeking the death penalty for Brandon, said requests for such orders have been a rarity in Will County.

Burmila said courts in the past have reserved such orders mostly for cases involving children. He also noted that attorneys already are restricted in what they can say outside of courtrooms.

Defense attorney Mary Rosiek-Cardin, an assistant public defender, declined to comment on the case.

Though seeking special courtroom restrictions because news reports have ``aroused and incited feelings`` against Brandon in the community, she has not asked that the trial be moved to another county, which is a more frequent request in high-profile trials.

The so-called gag order is among numerous defense requests Ewert has scheduled for consideration Tuesday, including a defense effort to have Brandon declared mentally unfit to stand trial.

On Jan. 3, the defense failed in an attempt to disqualify Ewert from hearing the case.

Rosiek-Cardin contended at the time that Ewert`s statements in an unrelated case indicated the judge believes a person with Brandon`s IQ of 73 cannot be considered mentally retarded.

She also claimed that the judge`s wife, who worked with special education students, may once have met Brandon during a class.

Judge Edward Masters refused to disqualify Ewert, saying there was no reason to believe that Ewert would be unwilling to change his mind on the IQ issue and noting that Ewert`s wife did not recall any meeting with Brandon, which would have been more than 10 years ago.

Rosiek-Cardin`s bid last January seems to indicate that Brandon`s mental state will become an important part of his defense.

Brandon, a construction worker, was arrested May 1, 1990, at a trailer park between Wilmington and Coal City.

VanDuyne, who lived alone, was found by neighbors in her bathtub. Brandon`s aunt lived two doors away from her, police said.